For busy Rickwood vendors baseball is a meal ticket

B10 Birmingham Post-Herald, Monday, June 20, 1983
`Hey, beer here!'
For busy Rickwood vendors, baseball is a meal ticket
By Ray Mack Post-Herald Reporter
6:30 p.m. � It's Tuesday night at Rickwood Field. Traffic is bumper-tobumper up and down 12th Ave. West, and the turn lanes on both 3rd Ave. North and South are backed up, turning a five-minute drive into a 30-minute wait. Neighborhood kids, joined frequently by their parents, stand on curbs and sidewalks waving towels and rags, offering the use of front yards, driveways and deserted lots as parking areas � for a price, of course. Free enterprise lives.
Inside the stadium, players for both the Birmingham Barons and Orlando Twins are getting ready for their 7:30 p.m. game. They've been at the park since about 4, taking batting practice, getting injuries tended to and ankles taped.
As if the game wasn't enough of an attraction, tonight is "Chicken Night" at Rickwood, as the San Diego Chicken makes the first of two appearances this summer.
But before the fans even left home, before the players ever arrived at the park, Jimmy Hammock was at Rickwood getting ready for a game he would not see an inning of. Since 2:30 this afternoon, Hammock and his four-man crew of Ricky Hall, Barry Page, Mike Uriarte and Kenny Ronsisvalle have been popping popcorn (1300 boxes worth, each box filled and closed by hand), icing down beer (50 cases, each case packed in its own icebox), and loading trays with Coke cups (they'll hold off on filling each cup with ice and Coke and then sealing each cup with plastic for later).
Hammock is in charge of the "hawkers" room, a little room underneath the stands on the first base side where the vendors who work the crowd during Barons' games come to get their product.
"This is all in addition to the four concession stands," says Hammock, whose regular job is as a teacher and coach at Cathedral Christian Academy, "and the restaurant. On slow nights, we'll have just myself and two other guys working back here. But tonight we're expecting a large crowd, so we've got a full crew."
By 6:30 everything is ready, and the hawkers are beginning to check in. Tonight Hammock will have five hawkers selling beer, two selling Coke, two selling popcorn and one selling peanuts. With the crowd expected to be near capacity, everyone wants to work.
6:47 � Hammock sits in the doorway of the hawkers' room, his post for the rest of the evening. Judging from the flow of people walking up the street in front of him, it looks like this is going to be an even bigger crowd than originally expected.
Each hawker is issued an apron, a button identifying their product and price, money to make change with, and, of course, their product. As soon as they check in, they are free to get out and start working the crowd.
The last of the hawkers leaves to begin roaming the stands at 7:12. Hammock and his crew sit and watch the people pour past the hawkers room door. It's the only inactive time they'll have for the rest of the evening.
7:27 � The hawkers are already beginning to return. They know this is going to be a good night, and they keep yelling for "Coach" to hurry up and get them back out.
The game has not even begun, and one young hawker is bragging about a $3 tip. Another, Leon Hood, has sold out his tray of popcorn in 15 minutes, setting a pattern he'll keep all night. Carl Commack a
On a hot night at Rickwood Field, a vendor, his back turned to the action on the field, pours another cold one for a fan in the box seats
veteran hawker considered the best at Rickwood, is out with his first two cases of beer at 7:12 and back in at 7:38 -- 48 beers sold in 26 minutes.
"I've been doing this all my life, since I was a little kid," Commack says. "I don't really have to. I've got a good job. But it's something I enjoy. You meet a lot of people, and you'd be surprised at how many job offers I've had from people, people who think this is all I do and say I look like a hard worker. I've had 10 or 15 job offers from just out here hustling."
Another beer hawker, known as Brown, sells almost a case right outside the hawkers' room door.
7:48 - There is a steady stream of hawkers crowding the door now. The game may or may not have started. The hawkers aren't paying attention, and although Hammock has a radio on which he listens to the game, he hasn't had time to stop and turn it on.
8:00 � Hood stops in for popcorn. He's sold five trays worth, and knows he's heading for a record night. Thirty minutes into the game, Hammock realizes he is running low. He tells Hill to start popping more popcorn.
8:08 � Commack is back in for more beer.
The hawkers are smelling profits. They're crowding around the door, thrusting money at Hammock in handfuls. He has to count out how much they owe him from what they've sold, mark off how much they've sold, and write down how much they take back out. The money is shoved at him in wads of ones and handfuls of change.
It's mentally racking," Hammock says. "Sometimes I'm afraid I won't keep it straight. I have nightmares."
8:18 ��� Hood is back for his sixth tray of popcorn. In just over an hour, he's sold 180 boxes, $54 worth of popcorn. The demand is exceeding the supply.
8:23 � There is no letup. Someone catches the score from the radio. It's only the top of the fifth inning. Outside, the Barons lead 3-0.
8:26 � Hood is in again for more popcorn.
8:36 � Commack is in for more beer. The hawkers sell Budweiser, Miller, Bud Lite and Miller Lite. The two Lites don't sell as well as Bud
and Miller, but, Commack says, "They all sell. People get to drinking beer and they'll drink anything if the temperature is hot enough and the beer is cold enough."
9:02 � One of the younger Coke hawkers checks in. He's sold 180 Cokes, $137.70 worth and has earned $15.30 for his two hdqrs' effort.
"They start getting tired and start checking in by the sixth inning," Hammock said. But most of the hawkers aren't about to quit yet.
9:26 � According to the radio, it's the top of the sixth inning. The Barons are leading 5-4, good news for the hawkers.
"Definitely, the time people are most likey to buy is right after a home run, when the home team is winning," Commack says. "I use the phrase, `Let's celebrate.' You'd be surprised how many people raise up their hand."
9:32 � They are ready to buy tonight. There are only three cases of beer left. In seven innings, 47 cases of beer have been sold. Hammock is in danger of running out, but one of the guys manages to come up with five more cases.
9:35 � The peanut vendor checks in. He's the only hawker that doesn't check in during the game, since he can take 200 bags out with him. He's sold all 200 bags � $90 worth � a rare occurrence.
9:41 � The beer vendors are starting to come in, reluctantly.
9:42 � Commack comes in and gets the last two cases of beer.
"I've seen it when it's better," says Commack, who is working on his 10th and 11th cases. "I've seen it when you can't even get out of the door. But it's no problem selling anything tonight."
9:51 � Hood is finally ready to quit for the night. Hammock totals up his sales. Since 7 p.m., Hood has sold 11 trays of popcorn, or 220 boxes. He's smiling as Hammock counts out his money.
9:53 � The last case of beer goes out.
9:58 � A beer vendor comes back in. "Give me some more beer, quick," he pleads.
"We're out."
A look of horror comes over his face. "Please, just another case."
Hammock starts totalling the sales for the night. They've gone through 480 cokes ($367.20 worth), 380 boxes of popcorn ($171.00), and the 200 bags of popcorn.
10:11 � "You sure you ain't got no more beer?" pleads one of the vendors. "Man, it's been good tonight."
10:21 � Commack checks in. He's sold 12 cases of beer, the most of any of the beer vendors. The game is just entering the ninth inning.
"I could have sold more if we'd had more," Commack says. Hammock totals up the beer sales. Between them, five vendors hawked 1,252 cans of beer, $1,304.20 worth, or roughly 6.2 beers per minute.
Commack sold 12 cases to earn $60, not counting tips.
"All jokes aside, I'm a hustler," Commack says. "I really get after it. That's the name of the game. People like that, and that's how I get my tips. If you get out here and really hustle, you deserve every dime you make."
11:33 � The game ends at about 11:10 as the Barons win 7-6 in 10 innings. The hawkers' room crew has the room cleaned up by 11:30 and are ready to head home. They haven't seen a minute of baseball, a second of the San Diego Chicken. Except for necessary breaks, they haven't left the hawkers' room since before i p.m.
"Needless to say, I'm glad that bird only comes twice a summer," Hammock says. "I mean, it'; good for the park and everyone, but if it was like this every night, they'd Lave to pay me a thousand dollars to do this."
By Jack Rose
Mike Jones fills a tray of Cokes for a busy vendor
"Definitely, the time people are most likely to buy is right after a home run, when the home team is winning. I use the phrase, 'Let's celebrate.' You'd be surprised how many people raise up their hand."
"All jokes aside, I'm a hustler. I really get after it. That's the name of the game. People like that, and that's how I get my tips. If you get out here and really hustle, you deserve every clime you make."
� Rickwood Field beer vendor Carl Commack

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B10 Birmingham Post-Herald, Monday, June 20, 1983
`Hey, beer here!'
For busy Rickwood vendors, baseball is a meal ticket
By Ray Mack Post-Herald Reporter
6:30 p.m. � It's Tuesday night at Rickwood Field. Traffic is bumper-tobumper up and down 12th Ave. West, and the turn lanes on both 3rd Ave. North and South are backed up, turning a five-minute drive into a 30-minute wait. Neighborhood kids, joined frequently by their parents, stand on curbs and sidewalks waving towels and rags, offering the use of front yards, driveways and deserted lots as parking areas � for a price, of course. Free enterprise lives.
Inside the stadium, players for both the Birmingham Barons and Orlando Twins are getting ready for their 7:30 p.m. game. They've been at the park since about 4, taking batting practice, getting injuries tended to and ankles taped.
As if the game wasn't enough of an attraction, tonight is "Chicken Night" at Rickwood, as the San Diego Chicken makes the first of two appearances this summer.
But before the fans even left home, before the players ever arrived at the park, Jimmy Hammock was at Rickwood getting ready for a game he would not see an inning of. Since 2:30 this afternoon, Hammock and his four-man crew of Ricky Hall, Barry Page, Mike Uriarte and Kenny Ronsisvalle have been popping popcorn (1300 boxes worth, each box filled and closed by hand), icing down beer (50 cases, each case packed in its own icebox), and loading trays with Coke cups (they'll hold off on filling each cup with ice and Coke and then sealing each cup with plastic for later).
Hammock is in charge of the "hawkers" room, a little room underneath the stands on the first base side where the vendors who work the crowd during Barons' games come to get their product.
"This is all in addition to the four concession stands," says Hammock, whose regular job is as a teacher and coach at Cathedral Christian Academy, "and the restaurant. On slow nights, we'll have just myself and two other guys working back here. But tonight we're expecting a large crowd, so we've got a full crew."
By 6:30 everything is ready, and the hawkers are beginning to check in. Tonight Hammock will have five hawkers selling beer, two selling Coke, two selling popcorn and one selling peanuts. With the crowd expected to be near capacity, everyone wants to work.
6:47 � Hammock sits in the doorway of the hawkers' room, his post for the rest of the evening. Judging from the flow of people walking up the street in front of him, it looks like this is going to be an even bigger crowd than originally expected.
Each hawker is issued an apron, a button identifying their product and price, money to make change with, and, of course, their product. As soon as they check in, they are free to get out and start working the crowd.
The last of the hawkers leaves to begin roaming the stands at 7:12. Hammock and his crew sit and watch the people pour past the hawkers room door. It's the only inactive time they'll have for the rest of the evening.
7:27 � The hawkers are already beginning to return. They know this is going to be a good night, and they keep yelling for "Coach" to hurry up and get them back out.
The game has not even begun, and one young hawker is bragging about a $3 tip. Another, Leon Hood, has sold out his tray of popcorn in 15 minutes, setting a pattern he'll keep all night. Carl Commack a
On a hot night at Rickwood Field, a vendor, his back turned to the action on the field, pours another cold one for a fan in the box seats
veteran hawker considered the best at Rickwood, is out with his first two cases of beer at 7:12 and back in at 7:38 -- 48 beers sold in 26 minutes.
"I've been doing this all my life, since I was a little kid," Commack says. "I don't really have to. I've got a good job. But it's something I enjoy. You meet a lot of people, and you'd be surprised at how many job offers I've had from people, people who think this is all I do and say I look like a hard worker. I've had 10 or 15 job offers from just out here hustling."
Another beer hawker, known as Brown, sells almost a case right outside the hawkers' room door.
7:48 - There is a steady stream of hawkers crowding the door now. The game may or may not have started. The hawkers aren't paying attention, and although Hammock has a radio on which he listens to the game, he hasn't had time to stop and turn it on.
8:00 � Hood stops in for popcorn. He's sold five trays worth, and knows he's heading for a record night. Thirty minutes into the game, Hammock realizes he is running low. He tells Hill to start popping more popcorn.
8:08 � Commack is back in for more beer.
The hawkers are smelling profits. They're crowding around the door, thrusting money at Hammock in handfuls. He has to count out how much they owe him from what they've sold, mark off how much they've sold, and write down how much they take back out. The money is shoved at him in wads of ones and handfuls of change.
It's mentally racking," Hammock says. "Sometimes I'm afraid I won't keep it straight. I have nightmares."
8:18 ��� Hood is back for his sixth tray of popcorn. In just over an hour, he's sold 180 boxes, $54 worth of popcorn. The demand is exceeding the supply.
8:23 � There is no letup. Someone catches the score from the radio. It's only the top of the fifth inning. Outside, the Barons lead 3-0.
8:26 � Hood is in again for more popcorn.
8:36 � Commack is in for more beer. The hawkers sell Budweiser, Miller, Bud Lite and Miller Lite. The two Lites don't sell as well as Bud
and Miller, but, Commack says, "They all sell. People get to drinking beer and they'll drink anything if the temperature is hot enough and the beer is cold enough."
9:02 � One of the younger Coke hawkers checks in. He's sold 180 Cokes, $137.70 worth and has earned $15.30 for his two hdqrs' effort.
"They start getting tired and start checking in by the sixth inning," Hammock said. But most of the hawkers aren't about to quit yet.
9:26 � According to the radio, it's the top of the sixth inning. The Barons are leading 5-4, good news for the hawkers.
"Definitely, the time people are most likey to buy is right after a home run, when the home team is winning," Commack says. "I use the phrase, `Let's celebrate.' You'd be surprised how many people raise up their hand."
9:32 � They are ready to buy tonight. There are only three cases of beer left. In seven innings, 47 cases of beer have been sold. Hammock is in danger of running out, but one of the guys manages to come up with five more cases.
9:35 � The peanut vendor checks in. He's the only hawker that doesn't check in during the game, since he can take 200 bags out with him. He's sold all 200 bags � $90 worth � a rare occurrence.
9:41 � The beer vendors are starting to come in, reluctantly.
9:42 � Commack comes in and gets the last two cases of beer.
"I've seen it when it's better," says Commack, who is working on his 10th and 11th cases. "I've seen it when you can't even get out of the door. But it's no problem selling anything tonight."
9:51 � Hood is finally ready to quit for the night. Hammock totals up his sales. Since 7 p.m., Hood has sold 11 trays of popcorn, or 220 boxes. He's smiling as Hammock counts out his money.
9:53 � The last case of beer goes out.
9:58 � A beer vendor comes back in. "Give me some more beer, quick," he pleads.
"We're out."
A look of horror comes over his face. "Please, just another case."
Hammock starts totalling the sales for the night. They've gone through 480 cokes ($367.20 worth), 380 boxes of popcorn ($171.00), and the 200 bags of popcorn.
10:11 � "You sure you ain't got no more beer?" pleads one of the vendors. "Man, it's been good tonight."
10:21 � Commack checks in. He's sold 12 cases of beer, the most of any of the beer vendors. The game is just entering the ninth inning.
"I could have sold more if we'd had more," Commack says. Hammock totals up the beer sales. Between them, five vendors hawked 1,252 cans of beer, $1,304.20 worth, or roughly 6.2 beers per minute.
Commack sold 12 cases to earn $60, not counting tips.
"All jokes aside, I'm a hustler," Commack says. "I really get after it. That's the name of the game. People like that, and that's how I get my tips. If you get out here and really hustle, you deserve every dime you make."
11:33 � The game ends at about 11:10 as the Barons win 7-6 in 10 innings. The hawkers' room crew has the room cleaned up by 11:30 and are ready to head home. They haven't seen a minute of baseball, a second of the San Diego Chicken. Except for necessary breaks, they haven't left the hawkers' room since before i p.m.
"Needless to say, I'm glad that bird only comes twice a summer," Hammock says. "I mean, it'; good for the park and everyone, but if it was like this every night, they'd Lave to pay me a thousand dollars to do this."
By Jack Rose
Mike Jones fills a tray of Cokes for a busy vendor
"Definitely, the time people are most likely to buy is right after a home run, when the home team is winning. I use the phrase, 'Let's celebrate.' You'd be surprised how many people raise up their hand."
"All jokes aside, I'm a hustler. I really get after it. That's the name of the game. People like that, and that's how I get my tips. If you get out here and really hustle, you deserve every clime you make."
� Rickwood Field beer vendor Carl Commack